A living archive of Latina/Chicana/Hispana/Indigena/Afro-Latina stories

Journey of the Monarch Butterfly

My story begins when I was six years old, typical migrant family that was coming to the U.S. for the “American Dream.” I remember being scared of the new journey that was about to begin. Once arrived with family members it was hard to learn the new language and accustom to the new changes. In school it was hard being the new Latina girl in the school. At this time Utah State was not as diverse as California. I remember falling asleep in class because I was lost and confused. As I learned the language, I was able to stay awake and interact with the other students.

As I reached to 2nd grade, I made another transition. I moved to California. I could see the difference; I saw students of my own skin color and spoke the same language as me. I was able to adapt much faster and made friends that would then graduate together from high school.

“As I graduated high school, I wanted to accomplish my dream and my parents’ dream of graduating from a four-year college. As I approached this day, I remember thinking am I choosing wisely?”

As a bilingual person I was able to help those who couldn’t speak for themselves. I wanted to become a nurse, but I soon found out I didn’t enjoy this much, so I chose the social work field instead. Here I was able to help others with similar background as me with medical, school, and home translation. As well as helping them look for resources that are offered for them in their community.

Currently I work with middle and high schools as a health educator. In this job I am able to help students understand life-skills and have them learn how to advocate for themselves. I also help parents learn the different ways in which they can have meaningful conversations with their children.

I still continue to hold my dream of becoming a social worker to further help those who sometimes don’t know how. I keep in mind always to never lose my story of how far I’ve come. Thinking like the Monarch Butterfly, how it embarks in the migration journey, but always returning back home.

Storyteller Monarch Butterfly is an only child of a migrant family. She moved here at the age of 6 and currently works as a health educator in Hayward, Ca.